The Commodores racked up a string of hits like "Machine Gun", "Brick House", "Easy", "Three Times A Lady", "Sail On", "Oh No", "Slippery When Wet", "To Hot To Trot", and many others that literally moved an entire generation. They were its largest selling act for two decades, the 70’s and 80’s. Smart and funky enough to open for the Jackson 5, to be discovered by Berry Gordy in the process, and to sell more than 60 million records for Motown. Most of all, they want you to know that the Commodores are alive and well in the 90’s, with their own label, and five new albums in stores.įrom the beginning at Tuskegee Institute in 1968, the Commodores were known as "smart guys".
They want you to know that the Commodores, despite a string of monster hits and massive tours in the late 70’s and early 80’s, won their first Grammy Award for the multi-platinum smash single and LP "Night Shift" in 1986. The Commodores want you to know that their friend and comrade, Lionel Richie left the band seventeen years in 1983.
Nicholas was with the Commodores for 5 years and then they stopped producing albums. Their biggest hit was "Nightshift" in 1985. Nicholas: After Lionel Richie left the Commodores in 1981, The Commodores released 3 more studio albums between 19 and they scored 8 more hits with drummer Walter Clyde Orange singing lead along with Lionel Richie's replacement J.D. It's been over 25 years since he joined the group.Ġ2. Taylor joined the group in 1978 and sang lead on all the groups hits from that point on, which included Celebration, Too Hot, Get Down On It, Cherish, Joanna and others. Taylor: Kool & the Gang first charted in 1969. He was with Van Halen for 22 years when they got inducted. Sammy Hagar: Inducted with Van Halen in 2007. He sang the Eagles hit, "I Can't Tell You Why" from 1980 and "Love Will Keep Us Alive" from 1994.Ġ2. He was with the Eagles for only 17 years when they were inducted. Schmidt: Inducted with the Eagles in 1997.
When I usta tell people that I was at Tuskegee, the first thing that they'd asked was "Do you know the Commodores?".Yes, I do.How many bands can you name that had a major hit being sung by a member who was not an original member of the group and when the group was inducted, the singer who sung the major hit wasn't included as an inductee?Ġ1. Always tell this story and will forever be thankful to Lionel and proud that the Commodores were just regular guys when they came home to Tuskegee. including the Men's & Women's Championship Trophy's. We went to Nashville and won 26 out the 30 tennis trophy's awarded that day. He came our to us, reached in his back pocket, pulled out his checkbook and wrote us a check for $500.00 (Still have that visual in my head). One of our girl team members (Adrienne Charlton) saw Lionel there that day and asked him for help with our trip. Once we were not going to make a trip to the Fisk Invitationals because we didn't have the funds. WAK would practice with us and come to our matches and Lionel would be at our practice a lot too. King (WAK) were on the team in the late 60's. Was a Freshman at Tuskegee Institute when this came out and the Commodores were HOT!!! I was on the TI tennis team from '75'-'78 and Lionel Richie and William A. 'Cause what you got can sho' nuff mean a lot
Written by: THOMAS MC CLARY, WALTER ORANGE Love gets slippery when it's wet, uh, come on Love gets slippery when it's wet, huh, come on, yeah 'Cause what you've got can sho nuff mean a lot